Rep. Bob Goodlatte said Tuesday that he believes Congress, and not the FCC, should have purview over the future of net neutrality.

In December, following a conflict between Netflix’s content delivery network and Comcast, the FCC voted for what some described as “toothless” net neutrality rules. The new rules forbid ISPs like Comcast from preventing access to certain web sites, such as Netflix. But the rules don’t block those telecom companies from charging customers more money for faster, better access to certain websites. Also, mobile “smartphone” 3G and 4G carriers are exempt from the new rules.

On Tuesday, at a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee, Goodlatte asserted that trustbusting is Congress’ job, and should not be at the discretion of regulatory “bureaucrats.” Wendy Davis reported on MediaPost.com:

Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), chair of the House Judiciary Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet subcommittee, called Tuesday’s hearing the first step toward ensuring that Congress, and not the FCC, makes any rules regarding the Web. He added that the Internet “must be allowed to grow and innovate” without becoming mired in regulations.

Goodlatte did not see FCC regulations as a way to prevent anticompetitive behavior, criticizing the FCC’s order as “morass of bureaucratic rules.”

“I believe that the right approach is a light touch that focuses on punishing anticompetitive behavior, enforcing antitrust laws, and even potentially tweaking those laws to ensure that they still operate as intended in the digital age,” he said.

Testifying before the panel, Public Knowledge President Gigi Sohn said both antitrust and FCC rules are necessary to preserve the open Internet. She said net-neutrality proponents want to ensure “the next Google, the next Twitter, the next Netflix” are able to compete.

The industry Goodlatte spoke about regulating also happens to be one of his biggest campaign contributors. According to data on OpenSecrets.org, Comcast Corp was among the top five contributors to Goodlatte’s campaign committee during the 2010 cycle. The “Computers/Internet” and “TV/Movies/Music” industries gave generously to Goodlatte’s war chests during the same cycle, kicking in more than $145,000 combined.

Goodlatte is a piece of work. A little over one month ago this two-faced dupe sponsored legislation to balance the budget. Yesterday he voted to spend $500 million on an useless second engine for the F35 strike fighter. An engine the Pentagon doesn’t even want! It is pork. Pure and simple. This is what you get when you get when you have a congressman who is not held responsible for his actions. Shame on the 6th CD.

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Friendly City Food Co-Op, Harrisonburg’s consumer-owned grocery, invites the community to come see its new destination for natural, organic and locally-produced products at the store’s grand opening 11 a.m.-5 p.m. July 9 at 150 East Wolfe Street.

HARRISONBURG, VA — Friendly City Food Co-op, slated to open this month in Harrisonburg, Va., has become the newest member of the National Cooperative Grocers Association (NCGA), a business services cooperative serving 120 consumer-owned food co-ops nationwide.

May 2: Harrisonburg was honored when the League of American Bicyclists announced the latest round of Bicycle Friendly Community (BFC) designations over the weekend to kick off May as National Bike Month.